| Author |
Message |
mark (Olderthendirt)
| | Posted on Monday, November 26, 2001 - 10:17 am: | |
I suggest this trend started in the late seventies, when management of the insurers started to be hijacked by money men (high intrest rates ment big profits) with no insurance in their blood. I don't see any short term cure, I hope that someone will realize that claims guys (gals) can make a difference |
R.D. Hood (Dave)
| | Posted on Monday, November 26, 2001 - 12:04 am: | |
Here is an excerpt from Claims Magazine:
Perhaps we do have some value?
National Report
Industry Faces Brain
Drain
The shortage of claim professionals is a growing crisis for insurance
industry, which is failing to attract new employees or retain those
currently employed in claim departments, according to
“Property-Casualty Claims Management: Adjusting to New Realities,”
a recent study by Conning & Co.
Despite increasing unemployment levels across the nation, the
demand for qualified insurance claim professionals has never been
higher, said the study’s author, Geri Riley, assistant vice president at
Conning. “In fact, the dearth of experienced claim professionals
could reach crisis levels for the industry unless insurers do more to
attract and develop the future claims leaders of their organizations,”
she said.
In the 1990s, the search for increased profits led many insurers
relegated their claim departments to the back seat, while they
focused on marketing, sales, and asset management. As a weaker
investment market has forced insurers to reexamine their core
operations, claims management is receiving more attention.
Unfortunately, prior cuts in the recruitment and training of new
adjusters have left many claim departments severely weakened and
overworked.
Although upper management levels are staffed with experienced
professionals, there are not enough people to succeed them. "The
scarcity of future claims leaders needs to be addressed
immediately," said Riley. "The claims division is the most public part of
an insurer and it is as responsible for retaining customers as it is for
minimizing losses."
In order to retain and attract claim professionals, insurers need to
make advanced training and educational opportunities available, Riley
said. Many of the claims executives interviewed for the study
pointed out that there is often no clearly defined career path for
claims professionals and no development plans to prepare people for
positions of increased responsibility.
In the long run, insurers may find that a well staffed claim
department could actually be a way of economizing in these days of
runaway litigation. In many cases, insurers’ best defense is to
maintain highly experienced claims departments, Riley said. |
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